Hjalmar Siilasvuo

Hjalmar Siilasvuo (18 March 1892-11 January 1947) was a Lieutenant-General of the Finnish Army during World War II.

Biography
Hjalmar Siilasvuo was born on 18 March 1892 in Helsinki, Finland, Russian Empire. Siilasvuo worked for the Ministry of Education while studying law, and he also served in the Imperial German Army during World War I, rising to command a battalion during the Finnish Civil War against the communists. He took command of the 27th Jaeger Battalion during the Winter War in 1939, and he had a great record during the war, winning the crucial Battle of Suomussalmi against the Soviet Red Army's two divisions. Siilasvuo would continue to lead units during the Continuation War, and he was given command of the Finnish forces fighting Nazi Germany during the Lapland War. On 21 December 1944, he was awarded the Mannerheim Cross. He died in 1947, and his son Ensio Siilasvuo would also become a general.